MISCELLANEOUS. THE NINEVEH MARBLES. [From (he "Athenæum."]

New Zealander, Volume 7, Issue 557, 16 August 1851, Page 4

MISCELLANEOUS. THE NINEVEH MARBLES. [From (he " Athenæum."]

Of tbe recent additions made to the well-known collection of these venerable relics in the liiitish Museum, two specimens are temporality lodged in the Gieat Hall m that establishment. They are bas-reliefs representing — one, a Winged Human-Headed Lion, the other a Winged Human -Headed Bull. The latter should not be mistaken, as lias been the ca«e, for the Colossal Bull — which is now on its way homeward, and daily expected. The two ? illevi have been so perfectly described by Mr. Layard that we cannot do better than extract from his descuption for the purpose of conveying to our provincial readers a notion of these new arrivals. Fii st of the Winged Lion — " This colossal figure formed one side of a portal leading from an outer chamber into the Great Hall of the North- West Palace at Nimroud. The one selected stood on the north side of the western entrance. It was m admirable preservation, and about twelve feet square. Each entrance to the same chamber, and the entrance to most of the halls of the Assyrian palaces, were formed by paiisof similar monsters, either lions or bulls with the human head and the wings of a bird. There can be little doubt that they were invested with a mythic or symbolic character — that they typified the Deity or some of his attubutes, hi 9 omniscience, his übiquity, and his might. Like the Egyptian Syhynxes, they were probably introduced into the architectuie of the people on account of their sacred character. Thirteen paiisof them — some, however, very much injured — weie discovered among the rums of Nimroud. At Kouijunjik five pairs of winged bulls were dug out, — but neither in these ruins nor at Khoisabnd was the winged lion found. They differed considerably in size — the largest being about sixteen and a half feet square, and the smallest scarcely five ; and in every instance [ were sculptured out of one solid slab. The head and foie part were finished all round, — the body and hind legs being in high relief. The spaces behind the back and between the legs were covered with a cuneiform inscription." The Winged Human-lleaded Bull is thus described ''The figure heie engraved is similar in character to the Winged Lion, and formed the eastern side of the southern entrance to the Great Hall in the NorthWest Palace at Nimroud. It was sculptured out of a yellow limestone. The human head of the bull forming the opposite side of the entrance is now in the British Museum." There is little to be remarked that is new respecting the design or execution of these works. The same motives are seen to have influenced the artists as those already described— and the detaila are wrought with the like perseverance and care. We confess to being satiated with these repeated recurrences to the same formula; of expression, — and little disposed to recommend that an inch more of the valuable s>paco in our Great National Building shall be given up to them. It is sufficient for the national honour that this country was among the first to possess any of these pumitive I Hpecnntir* of sculptuie, with the valuable lessons which I they leap* 1 ' We have enough of them in the Museum.

to repiPMMit satisfactonly their style and mannings. Might not tlic piovinchil museums — fconif of winch aie growing into an impoitancc that deserves public encouragement — coinu in for their shuro of any further importations ?

Nmv Act -jo hiioriin Acts ot Paiummtnt. — Among the statues of the last feession of Parliament was one " for shortening the language used in Acts of Parliament." It contains eight concisely woided sections, and, according to the pi o visions very consideiable improvements are expected to be made in future acts. Subsequent acts, it is expected, will not contain a provision to alter or amend. They will be divided into sections, without any introductory words. It will be sufficient to cite the year of the reign of a formei act ; the woul " expedient" will become obsolete. There will be no need of interpretation clauses, nor of others respecting repealed provisions; and all future ads sire to be deemed public acts, unless expies < -ly declared to the contrary. The act is to commence and take effect from and immediately after the commencement of the new sesbion of Paili.unent. — Times.

Caljtornia. —This t emote district is now thf> seat oj a powciful independent State — a State which has been lounded and fonstilutrd, iroin beginning to end, m about thitty month •>' time, and winch, though junior in political bit tli even to the French Republic, hat obtained a formal locognition of its existence, and is exercising all the functions of an organized commonwealth When the piccious metdls ot J'otosi and Peru wcie first pouied into Europe, the discovery excited an instantaneous influence on the Old World, but filled to create any conespomling movements in the New. The treasures of California, on the contiary, have hitherto wrought their chief wonders in the l.md of their piodi ction, and though they have not yet mateiially affected the currency of Europe, they have called into boing at the exticmilies of the Pacfie a community unpaialleled in the manifold fusions of races or combinations ot men. The 29th ot December w,is selected by the Cahfoinuiii as the birthday of thcii State — as a festival to be celebrated in honoui of their admission to the Ameiican Union. Forgetting for a moment the decorative featmes of this exhibition, let the leader consider the extraordinary character of the facts it simbolized. Here was a community of some hundreds of thousands of souls, collected itom all quarters of the known world—Polynesians and Pemvians, Englishmen and Mexicans, Germans and New JKnglandtrs Spaniards and Chinese —all oiganized under old baxon institutions, and actually matching under the command of a Mayor and Aldeiman. Nor was this all, lor the extemporized State had demanded and obtained admission into the most powerful federation in the woild, and was lecognized as a constituent part of the American Union. A thud of the time winch has been consumed in erecting our Houses of Parliament, has theie sufficed to create a Stite with a temtory as large as Gicat Bntain, a population difficult to number, and destines which none can foresee. — London 'Times

Major Cass at Rome. — We find in the New Yoik Heiald the following statement relative to the release of political prisoners at Home, derived from the conespondent of that paper: In the Roman dungeons of D'Anzo and St. Angelo are confined thiiteen piisoneis, whose inexpiable crime consists in having paiucipatcd in the late revolutionary struggle which had lor its object to secure to the inhabitants of the Pontiff's dominions the inestimable rights of repiesentation, together with other constitutional reforms. They are not of (he class of fanatics or factious demagogues who have defiled our noble cause not less in Italy than in France, but men of high character and lofty punciples, who in the good fight for the benefit of their childien and their children's childien— of those who aie to come after them— hnzaided all, and lost all. Among them are five counts and one maiquis, of ancient blood, whose lineal descent goes back, without break or interruption to the middle ages. They have been declaicd foiever incapable of holding property, of whatsoevci description. For seveii long months they have languished in loathsome dungeons. Tlit'ie they lie, a'luneg with the bandits. and felons, and brigands ; and dftday er day the piospecl of theirhbeiation, so far fiotn becoming brightei, glows only darker and more hopeless. There they lie, those noble, noble gentlemen, weary of life, and sick of this most ba c e world, with no spot, or strain, or blemish on their reputation, save the sin of having struck for liberty. The Government will not release them, for the dissemination of republican sentiments is fatal to its very existence. Neither can it exile them, for no country m Europe will harbor such propogandists. JN ow what has been done for them ? Why Mr. Cass, your minister, has proposed to the Papal authorities to send them to California, himself engaging to pay 53,000 for their expenses in a Fiench ship, which will leave Buideaux for that destination in the month of February. The Cardinals have accepted this proposal, agreeing to liberate these gentlemen nine days prior to the departuie of the vessel in question which affords them ju&t sufficient time to reach tha seaport. Honour to your Minister and to the gloiiou, Lindfiom which he comes. His conduct has elicted deep admiration ; and well it may.

I AnmvAL op Hungarian Refugeis.— On Tuesday | the Sardinian brig Arpia, Captain Jiartbolletto, armed in the Mersey with the expected Hungarian refugees 1 . The vessel is direct from Constantinople, and brings 262 passengers. These people are confided to the caro of the authorities here, who have made arrangements with Mr. S.ibell, of the Emigi ant's Homo, in Moorfield*, to receive them. '1 hey will he landed to-day, and taken to their lefugp. Though the vessel which brought them over is small, there bus been no sickness on boaul, and they speak in high terms of tbe treatment they have met with on the voyage, nnd also of the conduct of the Turkish people during their stay of eighteen months in that country. They consist chiefly of Poles, mixed with Italians and Hungarians, and they are of all grades in rank. They are exceedingly poor, though healthy and in good spirits. An attempt will now be made to further their interests, by opening a subscription in tins, town, with the object of forn aiding them to Anieiica. The costumes of the lefugees are various, j and we believe they will bo iournl to be a fine set ot men. These refugees have appealed to us in dt&ticss; they have beon unfortunate, but they aie brave men, and there can be little doubt that the appeal to English sympathies will be liberally responded to. — Liveipool Courier.

Cumous Cusiom. — In 1833, the late Record Commissioueis issued ciicular questions to the Municipal Corporations of England and Wales, recjuebting vanous information ; simony such questions was the following : • — "Do any remaikablo customs prevail, or have any remarkable customs prevailed within memory, in relation to the ceremonies accompanying the choice of corporate office] s, annual processions, feasts, &c, not noticed in the printed histories or accounts of your borough 1 Describe them, if there bo such." To thu» quebtion the borough of Chippenliam, Wilts, replied as follows :—": — " The corporation dine together twice a year, and pay for it themselves!" — From Notes and Queries.

Escape or a Nun moM the Convent at Banbury. — "'lheiewas an escape of a ' nun' from tbo Roman Catholic establishment in this town, the other day," says the Bunlmiy Uiiaidian. "It appears that the young lady, who took an opportunity of withdi awing irom the convent, was one of the Sisters of Charity, nnd was chiefly employed in the school where a number of children are daily taught. She was known in the establishment as Sister Anionia, and there is some uncertainty as to what her worldly nnme is. She ia by some said to be highly connected. The convent at Banbury is not the first at which she has been. We believe she has been in a similar establishment in France and Nottingham. Her dissatisfaction with a conventual life was first made known, out of the house, by letters, which she contrived to have conveyed by children in the school to peisonsof the Protestant faith in Banbciry. An English New Testament, which by some chance came into her possession, disturbed the opinions in which she had been educated. She determined on getting away from St. John's, and resolved to do so early on Monday morning, and again on Tuesday morning, but at the moment of the contemplated escape her heart failed her. Shortly after nine o'clock, the school hour, on '1 uesday, while the other inmates were engaged, she took an opportunity of getting away unobserved; and, for some reason, instead of going to the parties in Banbury with whom she had been in communication, and who had offered her shelter, she set off on the road for Oxford. At Adderbury, three miles from Banbury, she became tired, and inquired for a Protestant minister. She was taken to the house of the Rev. Mr. Cricket, an Independent minister, wheie she was kindly received both by Mr. and Mis. Cricket, and with whom she was remaining yesterday. She has been supplied with clothing; and the gaiments peculiar to the sisterhood, in which she went away, have been returned to the convent. Befoie she left St. John's we believe an application was made by the parties witli whom she had been in communication to a neighbouring tmigistiate for his aid to iciuove hei, and he wrolo on llio subject to Sir George Grey, iho Secretary of State, but bhe did not wait for their inteiference, hut took the opportunity of acting alono, as we have described."